To Change Fate
by Silent Knightinggale
Summary: Things couldn't end like this, defeated and destroyed. We had to do something...something to stop this terrible future from ever happening. But, how could we? Standing alone against these monsters, we will never win. Perhaps with the help of Naga herself, we could stop this whole thing from ever happening. We would have to rewrite history to save the world we love. We have to!
1. Prologue—Escape the Death

I couldn't let this happen.

I felt as if my chest was being crushed by a boulder as I looked upon the castle's cold floor. What was left of Ylisse's army was strewn about upon chipped marble, their bodies awkwardly twisted and motionless. The once great pillars were now crumpled to the ground, worn from years of assaults. The horrible sounds of war resonated through the castle as I struggled to breathe. _How could this all happen? Things should have never become this bad. How could we still be losing after all of our efforts?_ My eyes glanced up to see our banners tattered and burning, the cackling mocking our very lives. I struggled to pull myself together as I gripped the hilt at my waist.

"Lucina..." I snapped my attention over my shoulder to find a boy just a few years younger than me standing with a worn expression, his blue hair twisted on his head from nights without sleep. Pale cheeks were scarred and covered in years worth of dirt and dust, marking him in a way that made him look so much older than he truly was. My heart sank momentarily as my vision stopped upon his robe—our mother's old robe. I tore my eyes away before lifting my chin with a broken determination.

"Morgan," The boy nodded before grasping something closer to his chest. I quickly found this to be a cracked tome, Thunder magic to be perfectly exact. "What's going on? I-I thought that—"

"They're gone." His blue eyes lifted to my own as he swallowed hard. "The Risen are too powerful, Luci. There's just no possible way to beat them." I felt a flame ignite in my chest at his words, forcing me to spin around and clenched my teeth.

"There _has_ to be a way!" Morgan simply looked away, avoiding my eyes. I felt my breathing become hot and ragged as I took another step towards him. "We cannot just give up, not after everything we've lost!" I felt my eyes sting with tears as he simply dipped his chin to his chest and closed his eyes. Images flashed through my mind, of faces of brave people lost along the way. "What about Aunt Lissa?! She gave up _everything_ for us!"

"Lucina—"

I just cut him off, a bitter feeling rising in my chest. "What about Uncle Frederick?! What about all of the Shepherds who gave their lives to protect us?!" I felt like I was suffocating as Morgan ignored me. I struggled to swallow as this feeling seemed to consume me. I felt a shudder go down my spine as I narrowed my eyes with anger. "What about our _parents_?!" At this, Morgan's head lifted with wide eyes. "Did they die just to let us _give up_?!"

"Of course they didn't!" His eyes, coated with tears, let a small fire ignite. "But what are we going to do, Lucina?!" He shot his left hand out, gesturing to the crumbling walls around us. "We're losing! The castle is falling in around us! We're so low on soldiers, food, weapons and morale!" He took a shaking, sharp breath as I stood there with my eyes narrowed. "On all fronts, we are defeated. Where it stands, Grima has already won."

I choked on my breath as I struggled to keep whatever this rising bitterness was down. "We have to do something! There has to be a way to win this war!" Morgan simply shook his head and let out a heavy, shivering breath. His shoulders fell as he lifted his head with a strange sense of stubbornness.

"We would need the aid of Naga herself to defeat this living nightmare, Lucina." He rubbed his fingertips against the worn leather of his tome before continuing, "The others and I have readied an escape plan." I felt a sharp bolt of horror at his words, but the Tactician continued on, "We will head to a remote village on the Feroxi border and treat our wounds there."

"But what will become of Ylisstol?!" More pictures raced through my mind, of happier times when we would climb in the orchards, or when we would try to lift a sword and take aim at one of the many practice targets outside the barracks. This place was our home, our only connection to what once was. The Ylisse House had started to crumble long ago, and by now, it was nearly dead. What would become of _us_?

Morgan slowly reached out to me, placing his left hand upon my shoulder. "Ylisstol is long gone, Luci." His blue orbs narrowed as he swallowed and tried to continue, his voice cracking with emotion. "Sister, the only thing left of House Ylisse is _us_." I shook my head stubbornly before looking away from his gaze. "Owain, Yarne, Nah and the others are already waiting outside." He paused, drawing a breath to replenish his lungs. "If we're going to live to see another sunrise, we have to leave _now_."

"B-But Morgan," My legs suddenly felt like they were going to give out below me, forcing me to lock my knees and grab my little brother's shoulders. "We-We've worked so hard to save the capital. Th-This is our home! We've always lived here! How can we just leave it behind like this?!"

I slowly looked to his face to find his eyes narrowed into slits. Inside of his blue eyes, I could see a trace of our mother, her inner flame carried on inside of us. That strength...oh, how I longed for her strength at times like these. "Lucina, a crumbling castle does not make a home." A bit of a crooked, broken smile slipped on his face as he gently lifted my hands from his shoulders. "What makes a home is _us,_ together. We are family, Lucina, and family is far more important than a pile of rubble."

I slowly took a shivering step backwards, pulling away from his hold. My right hand slowly slipped to the hilt of the Falchion, my fingers tightening over the metal grip. Morgan simply waited in silence, his eyes burning with something so foreign to me. My ears began to ring with the sound of Risen, their harsh, guttural screeches filling the air.

He was right. At this point, Ylisstol was reduced to nothing but ruins. This place may have been once my—our—home, but it had been hollowed long before now. That warmth that had once radiated out of every nook and cranny, had long ceased to exist. That warmth was something that could not be replaced, something that had been lost along the way. I knew deep down that the only reason I desperately clung to Ylisstol is not that I grew up here, but that this was one thing I could still connect to my parents. Our family...we were all that was left of it at this at this point.

I felt my heart twist in my chest as I slowly nodded. "Y-You're right, Morgan." My eyes were locked on to the twisted red below me, the stains of so many battles. "Ylisstol is gone now. W-We have to stay alive above holding on to something dead." I looked up to find my brother nodding his head with wet eyes, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

"Come on," He backed up a bit to wave me on with his left hand, his right holding his tome tightly in his grasp. "We have to leave before the Risen find out."

It was then that a deafening crash rang through the room.

Our eyes snapped to our left to find to our horror that one of the few untouched windows had now shattered on the floor, giving entrance to a howling Risen Barbarian. I stole a quick breath before grabbing our father's Falchion and yanking it out of its sheath, holding the blade at the ready. My face was reflected back to me in the gleaming surface, worn and dirt-caked. Black circles under my eyes only proved to accent just how long I had remained here, trying to hold on to the castle. I looked back to find Morgan readying his tome, a sharp crackle taking over the air. Yellow electricity surged up his arm as we stood there, waiting to attack.

"Now!" Suddenly, Morgan charged forward, hurling his magic straight at the rotten face of the beast. I lost my breath for a split second as the Thunder exploded and charged through the monster's veins, creating spasms that left it defenseless. My brother turned around with a breathless look, his eyes bright with some sort of spark. I then launched myself forward, my father's...no, _my _blade slicing through the pale flesh with ease. The monster let out a broken gasp before disappearing in a burst of purple smoke, leaving us alone and panting for air.

My little brother was the first to rise to his feet, his tome still releasing some excess energy in miniature bolts of Thunder. I soon rose as well, a half-smile on my face as the adrenaline created a lift in my chest. "Come on," He grabbed my hand with a bit of a gasp, his lungs certainly as empty—if not more so—than mine. "We have to get out of here before more show up!"

I lifted my chin just a bit higher before giving him a nod of confirmation. "Right, there must be more out there." I tightened my grip on my sword before we both raced off, leaving the ruins of the throne room behind us. As we raced out to the only remaining courtyard—seeing as the others had long since been burned to the ground—I selfishly stole a glance back at the remains of Ylisstol. The once regal form of stone had now deteriorated to a miserable state, with broken walls, shattered stained glass and crumbling turrets all around us. The blackened silhouette of the main chambers leaned against the last solid wall, looking for some sort of support against the near constant onslaught of attacks. The earlier bitter feeling rose once again in my throat, forcing me to turn away and focus on the twisted path of gravel below our boots.

"...Goodbye, Ylisstol."

* * *

><p>By the time we had both reached the far outskirts of the castle walls, we were both fighting for breath with our hands on our knees.<p>

The sounds of fire and screams resonated through the late evening, furthering the dark and depressing mood. Shortly after we stopped, the sound of footsteps rang out. I snapped my head up only to find a familiar face glancing down on us, dulled brown eyes seemingly looking straight through us. I let out a bit of a relieved sigh as I lifted myself to my full height, my little brother abruptly standing tall beside me. His nose twitched with unease as I tried to give him a reassuring smile, but he just shook his brown fur with an anxious growl.

"L-Lucina! Morgan!" The Taguel shifted on his feet as we slowly found a steady rhythm of breathing. "What took you two so long?! W-We were starting to think that you had gone extinct in there or something!" Suddenly, a second face emerged in the darkness, a torch held high over her orange hair. The sound of metal quickly made a name race to my mind, easing any sort of worry in my mind. It was obvious by her suit of armor who she was.

"Yarne," Kjelle, the last knight of the Ylisse House, shot the Taguel a glare with her black orbs. "You _always _worry about going extinct." She narrowed her eyes before turning to Morgan and I. "However, we were starting to get worried about you two." She motioned behind her with the torch before flashing a broken grin. "The wagon's ready to leave, you slow-foots! We were _this_ close to leaving your royal rears behind!" At this, Yarne jumped in air before taking a few steps back.

"We would _never_ leave you two behind!" He then took a sharp breath and looked over his shoulder, just as Kjelle had done. "B-But, the wagon is ready to leave."

I slowly turned to Morgan to find the flame dancing in those deep blue pools of his, the same eyes our father once held. "...Wagon?" He slowly turned towards me with a weak smile, his right knuckles turning white from gripping his book so tight.

"What? Did you really think that I was going to make us walk all the way to the Feroxi border?" He let out that strange chuckle of his, broken and unconvincing. "We're lucky enough to have _one _contact to our names, so why not call upon it?" The darkness was suddenly lit up by two torches, illuminating a farmer's cart with canvas nailed over it, guarding the contents from sight. Holding the torches were two more faces we knew, a young brunette boy and a much shorter girl with an orange shade of crimson hair.

"Well," My eyes strained against the darkness as an older figure emerged from the night, struggling along with a limp. The orange glow from the torches slowly revealed a man with dark curls covered by a beaten yellow pot, wearing a very old set of farm clothes. My mind raced for a name as the man stopped in front of us with pained eyes, just as anyone else would when they looked upon my brother and I. "I sure am glad to know that ya' two got out of there alright."

Morgan tapped my shoulder, drawing my attention away from the man's...er, _wild_ accent. "Lucina, meet Donnel, our last contact." My eyes widened as I suddenly found memories rushing to my mind, of tales of valor and heroics led by our parents. The man before me suddenly turned ten or more years younger, becoming a young boy with a spear and a desire to protect his village. Not just any boy, though. _A Shepherd. _

"B-But I thought they were dead!" I found the words tumbling out of my mouth before I could stop them, the man before us simple looking down with glassy eyes of pain, just as any villager had. "The Shepherds! Th-They all died in that attack! How in the name of Naga—"

"Lucina," I lifted my eyes as I found my eyes stinging with tears once again. His scarred face struggled to find any color in this strange lighting, and the words to say. "Your folks..." He motioned toward the covered wagon before continuing on, "_All_ of your folks, they wanted someone to be able to protect ya'." He dipped his head for a moment with a sharp exhale. "Th-They made me run from the fight, so's that ya'll would have a guard'an of sorts. Or, at the very least, som'one to bail y'all out."

"So you ran." The bitterness in my voice was apparently just as shocking to him as it was to me, for his eyes snapped up from his chest almost immediately.

"_Never_!" He shook his head before lifting his head. "I would've gladly stood by you two's pa' 'till my last breath! Your pa' just didn't want any of that! He sent me off to make sure all of ya' young'uns made it." A single tear slipped down his cheek as his eyes softened. "He wanted to protect all of ya'."

Before I could say a single word, Morgan stepped forward with a tight frown. He quickly turned to face me with that strange determination once again. "Lucina, we have to move." He motioned towards the cart with his sleeve, the sound rippling above the licking flames. "This darkness won't last long, and we must leave before things make a turn for the worst." I looked back up towards the man with broken eyes, giving him a glare to rival any look from Kjelle. Reluctantly, I nodded to my brother.

"You're right." His eyes lit up for a fraction of a second in this light, making a slight smirk appear on my face. A hand suddenly dropped on to my back, and I snapped my attention to my right. I found Donnel looking down on us with wet eyes, nudging us forward with a sharp breath. "C'mon now." Kjelle and Yarne slowly walked ahead, torch flames swaying with every step. "We've gotta get a move on if we're gettin' out of here 'fore dawn."

I just walked on with heavy steps, my brother right beside me with determined eyes.

"Hey," I looked up as we neared the wooden means of escape to find our cousin standing there with yet another broken smile, trying to hold on to some last spark of his. "We've got this under control!" His free hand to lifted to his dirt-covered chest before continuing on, "As a great hero, you can be certain that we're getting out of here without a single hassle!" His arrogance somehow reminded me of someone so important to me, someone long gone. I turned away before stopping right at the edge of the cart, refusing to enter. One by one, the torches were extinguished as the flame-bearers entered the canvas hideaway, leaving only a single light to dully reveal our escape.

I looked up to find Morgan already inside of the cart, his head bowed to avoid scrapping it across the canvas cover. "Hey," His voice leaked out as I stood there, rigid and unmoving. "Could you create a small flame for us, Laurent? It is a bit darker in here..." Seconds later, a small orange flame lit up the space, allowing Owian to abandon his torch and head inside of our escape transport. _This is it. _I took a deep breath before slowly grabbing on to the floor of the cart and pulling myself inside. _There's no turning back now._

The sight inside nearly made my heart stop beating.

Before me, eleven pale and tired faces were gleaming with sweat, tears and crimson. Their eyes were broken, downcast and coated with tears, while their clothes were dirty, ragged and covered with all sorts of mementos from the Risen. Weapons hung loose in their sheaths for some, others held on to their sword or axe as if they were in the center of a battlefield. Not a single one would look me in the eye, or even so much as spare me a glance. It was right there, inside of that wagon, that I realized just what we were. We were not heroes. We were tired, broken, scarred and bruised children, standing against our enemies with shaking legs and labored breathing.

We were orphans.

I nearly jumped when a hand dropped on to my shoulder. I whipped my head just in time to see my little brother offering me a small pouch of water and a weak smile. "You should really drink something, Luci." His voice was low, almost like a whisper. "I cannot even remember the last time I saw you eat or drink." At his words, my throat seemed to dry up. _He's right..._ I narrowed my eyes at the thought of all of the times I had skipped a meal, a drink, or a rest just to slay even more Risen. _I haven't had nearly enough these past few months._ I glanced over to the other side of the cart and found to my surprise that the others were passing around a similar skin of water, each one gulping down as much water as their mouths could possibly hold. _Although, I have a feeling that I'm not the only one here who's skipped a meal to try to save their skin._

"Thank you, Morgan." I slowly took the precious pouch from him and lifted it to my lips, wondering in the back of my mind just how much there was left to even drink. I soon got my answer when the last droplet of liquid slipped down my throat after only two gulps. I let out a small sound of shock before looking to my right. Luckily for my selfish slip, there wasn't a soul left on this side of the cart. I turned back to my brother to find him chuckling at me.

"Not to worry, there's more water at the head of the cart." He gently took the skin away before leaning his head back against the canvas. "Now, just relax for now. Hopefully, we can all get at least _some_ rest tonight, seeing as everyone has been skipping their sleeping shift to attack more Risen." He frowned for a moment at this before continuing on in a whisper so low, only I could hear it. "You know, our father used to take naps." I narrowed my eyes and frowned as a flash of the past blinded me, shoving the image of our father slipping away to his chambers in my mind. "I am certain that he would have endorsed us to do the same, had he been able to."

My eyes stung as I turned away and pulled my knees up to my chest, trying to conserve space for the others. "Father isn't here, Morgan. Taking a nap will not allow us to defeat our enemies, only staying awake and swinging a blade will."

My little brother opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, the cart suddenly jerked into motion. The precious cargo inside stumbled with groans and squeaks of shock, unnerved by the sudden shift of the floorboards. We angrily looked around before slowly calming down, the sound of wooden wheels smashing against the gravel below taking over. Eventually, a few of us returned to their previous positions, many of us curling up on the wagon and trying in vain to get some rest. I simply sat there, staring out the back of the cart. Slowly, the great black of the castle shrank behind us. I watched for a little while before turning away and looking to Morgan. Surprisingly, he was fast asleep, his mouth open slightly as he let out shivering snores. I felt a small smile tug at my lips as I watched him for a little while.

"Goodnight, Morgan." My voice was nearly silent as the orange glow from Laurent's magic faded away. "May Naga grant you a peaceful night's sleep." I leaned my head against the cloth cover and watched as the others slowly drifted off, their weapons in their hands and their feet twitching in their sleep as if they were trying to run. _May you all have a restful slumber..._ I let out a sigh and closed my eyes, my chest now tight with some sort of discomfort. _I will keep watch, just in case._

And with that small thought, I watched on as the rumbling cart slowly crept away from Ylisstol, leaving the capital to fall to the ground and be claimed by the Risen.

* * *

><p><em>Author's Note: Hey guys! Silent Nightinggale here with the first post to this account! You may recognize my writing style, my characterizations or something else about my writing. Well, that is due to the fact that this is actually a side-account I created just for fun. I'll be posting here for a while instead of my main account.<em>

_So, moving on to this piece...I have decided to write a first-person account for Lucina, seeing as her story is a very interesting one. I mean, there is just _so much potential_ there! Things may be slightly different, as I am currently writing this from Chapter...er...after the first arc and just destroyed Valm's fleet chapter. Ahaha...therefore, things may be changed along the way. However, ever since I met Lucina in-game, I've been wanting to write her story. So, here it is!_

_A thing you should know is that this takes the Arrogant!Brunette!Robin as the Avatar. Also, the ships will be based off of my copy of the game. Therefore, you'll see some (if I'm not mistaken) different pairings for the parents this time around. However, Chrom and Robin are still the leading ship of the fleet, so not to worry on that front. The others will be revealed as time goes on, or perhaps in a future Author's Note. Either way, things are hinted at here, but will not be revealed until later._

_So, we start the story before she heads to the past. It seems the castle is in worse shape than we though, eh? After over a decade of fighting, it would only make sense that things would deteriorate. During a war, you cannot actually stop to fix the interior or exterior, you know. You have to have priorities, like keeping yourself alive. However, it certainly can wear you down as a person, that much is certain. Surprisingly, Donnel is still alive! (Might be due to the fact that he almost never appears in battle in my game...) Luckily for the Broken Dozen, he's here to sneak them out of Ylisstol and take them to Regina Ferox! However, a canvas-covered wagon/cart isn't the smoothest of transportation, or even the most comfortable either... Well, better something than nothing!_

_Will the Broken Dozen and Donnel make it out of Ylisstol unnoticed? Will they escape to the safe-house in Ferox? Tune in next time to find out the answer!_


	2. Chapter One—Still not Free

_I was never one for dressing up._

_"Lucina," My mother's voice cooed as I squirmed in the small chair in front of her bedchamber vanity, trying to escape the dreaded hairbrush of torture. "Please, stop squirming. Don't you want to look pretty for the Khans?"_

_"Nuh uh!" The words popped out as I struggled to pull my head forward to counter the pulling on my head. "I don't wanna look pretty!" A small chuckle rang out against the wooden walls as my mother simply shook her head and leaned forward, resting her head right beside my own. Her warm eyes the color of chocolate slowly drifted to my stubborn frown before flirting back to the shimmering mirror.  
><em>

_"I'm afraid it's a little late for that, darling." I slowly looked back to my reflection to find my blue eyes shimmering, the color so different from my mother's. She slowly placed the hairbrush down before gently brushing aside a few stray hairs that were near my eyes. "You were born a pretty girl, and I'm certain you'll stay that way." A bit of a smirk came on her face as her hands drifted to my shoulders. "It must come from your mother."  
><em>

_I shot her a grin of my own before shaking my head. "Daddy said that I look more like him than you!" A bit of a frown came on my mother's face before she shook it off and released my shoulders. I tilted my head in confusion as I watched her pull out one of the many drawers of her vanity and put the brush away. _Did I say something wrong? _She paused for a moment before reaching up and fixing her long ponytail, tugging on her brown hair with delicate motions. _Mommy seemed a bit mad...

_"Well," I focused on my mother as she finally spoke up, her voice gaining a bit of a jesting tone. "Royal blood over Tactician blood, after all. A princess _should_ be like her father. It makes it easier on the artists when they paint your portrait." She looked back at me with a bit of a smile. "Then they can use the same pallets as your father's portrait." She chuckled at this before bending over and pulling out another drawer, this one holding her many pieces of jewelery that always seemed to stay right there in that very drawer._

_I watched on, dazzled by the many rubies, emeralds and sapphires on golden chains before my mother's hands gingerly took ahold of a small tiara. She then pulled it out with a smile, her eyes shrouded by her lashes. "Speaking of princesses," She paused to suddenly place the metal upon my head, tucking it in my long blue hair with ease. "It's about time you started showing off your lovely tiara, Luci."_

_"But—" My mother cut me off with a gentle yet somehow stern narrowing of her eyes._

_"It's all right, Luci. Trust me, there are worst things than being a princess." She waited for a moment before kneeling down in front of the chair, her hands dropping on my shoulders once again. "And, just between you and me, I don't really like dressing up that much, either." I opened my mouth to speak, but I was suddenly cut off by another voice speaking from the doorway.  
><em>

_"Oh? Don't tell me you are organizing a rebellion again, Robin."_

_We both turned to find my father leaning against the opening, a smile spread wide on his face. My mother pulled me out of my seat before placing my feet on the floor, letting out a slight humph all the while. "Not a rebellion, you dolt." Despite her words, I could see the playful spark in her eyes. "I am simply telling our daughter that looking nice for our guests is important when you're a princess, Chrom." She then walked over to my father with light steps, her eyes narrowed. "However, I was just about to tell her that the Feroxi admire something even more than looks."_

_A bit of excitement raced in my veins at her words. If there was _anything _my mother was known for, it was her love of one thing. And that one thing, was something that _all _Feroxi admired._

_My father's blue eyes widened for a moment before he closed them with a nod. "Let me guess, you want her to show off the fact that she can hold a training sword already?" I looked up excitedly at my father, watching the way that his chest expanded with a sigh. He opened his eyes with a small laugh, just as my mother made. "It seems that these years in the castle have not changed your bloodlust, Robin."_

_"Not bloodlust," My mother chided him once again, all the while drawing in closer and resting her forehead against his, their fingers intertwining. "I simply enjoy ridding this haildom of those horrendous monsters. Why shouldn't our daughter do the same?"_

_Father simply smiled and let out a heavy breath at her words. "I suppose...just try not to get her excited for battle so early." His eyes opened just enough to give me a wink, causing a smile to stretch on my own face. "I certainly believe that a five-year-old such as our daughter needs at least _some _time to play with dolls and the like, you know." __Mother just wrapped her arms around his shoulders, almost as if she had forgotten I was here. _

_"Sometimes, the battle comes to you. You have to be prepared for it, my dear."_

* * *

><p>My head suddenly slammed against the floor, causing me to let out a shocked gasp.<p>

The world swam in an ocean of black as I blinked at the ceiling, waiting for the sound of Risen to fill my ears. Surprisingly, the only sound I heard was of birds chirping, as if they had no idea of their pitiful existence. Slowly, I forced myself upwards, rising up to a sitting position. My head brushed against some sort of fabric, knocking my small crown right off my head. I growled out of annoyance before lifting it up gently and tucking it back in its proper place. It was just as I was lowering my hands that the events of the previous night washed over me.

"Oh Naga," I nearly moaned as my hands shot to my face, hiding my eyes as an overwhelming sting appeared. "Oh, Ylisse forgive my selfishness." I turned my head to look around, the black world slowly succumb to the light of day that had managed to leak in through the rough canvas. Just as I had suspected, not a single soul was left inside of the cart. Baffled, I let out a small hiss through my teeth. "Not only am I selfish, it appears I am also lazy." With a mental scolding of myself, I pulled back the canvas flap blocking the exit and stepped out into a world of light.

Yet another surprise awaited me in the form of a temporary campsite on the side of the road. A few of my fellow cowards were crouched around a campfire, eating some sort of wild game with gusto. Accompanying the birdsong was laughter, something I hadn't heard since I was a child. _Just what in the world is going on here?_ Confused, I tilted my head in confusion before taking a few steps towards them, trying to figure out the cause of such joy.

The overwhelming stench of old boots at least cleared up the matter of what they were eating.

I quickly snatched my nose with a tearful blink of my eyes. "An' then that there Wyvern Rider swooped on in with a big ol' roar, but Robin din't get scared one bit!" Donnel was leaning forward eagerly, watching the light of the campfire sway in every pair of eyes. The others watched him with full attention, unaware that I had even stepped out of the cart. "That monster came right in an' tried to slice her in two with his axe, hopin' to make us Shepherds loose our loved Tactician."

Yarne, who happened to give everyone who dared to eat the wild bear a wide berth, shivered in his spot of yellow grass. "W-What did she do?" His brown eyes widened before they slammed shut. "D-Did she go extinct?"

Kjelle leaned over just enough to her right as to give him a rough punch on his arm, earning a squeak from the Taguel. "No, you dolt! Morgan an' Lucina wouldn't be here if she died _that_ early!" She rolled her eyes at him before turning back to Donnel with a wide grin. "Well, just what did she do?"

The man simply laughed before leaning in and starting his tale again, waving his calloused hands around as he talked. "Well, that there was the bravest girl you would've found in such a situation! She just looked that beast straight in the eyes with her famous smirk on her face! You see," I watched on as he leaned in as if sharing a secret. "When Robin got this look on her face, you knew that someone was gonna lose blood, an' a lot of it, too!" He snapped back just as his audience let out murmurs of awe and worry, spreading his arms out with a sharp movement of his arms. "With her sword at the ready, she sliced that beast clean open! That there monster's blood was ever'where all at once, an' you couldn't tell that stuff from the rider or the dragon's! Heck, some even got on her face, but she just smiled straight through it!"

Nah let out a gasp of fright, her eyes wide with horror at the gruesome image such descriptions brought to the mind. I just narrowed my eyes, a bitter feeling rising in my throat. _How dare he..._ The man eagerly swallowed down the last of his portion of bear before taking in the response of his crowd, the awe and cheers wrapping around this small clearing until it was nearly suffocating me. _How dare he talk on about her like this! Has he no ounce of respect for her?! One does not simply talk about deceased warriors like that!_ I decided right there that I was going to stop this man from going any further, to keep him from disrespecting my mother like this.

However, a hand dropped on my shoulder before I could get that far.

I let out the second gasp of the day and spun around, my eyes still narrowed. To my surprise—or lack of—Morgan was standing behind me, his hair plastered the sides of his head and dripping wet. "Good morning, Luci!" He gave me a smile before tilting his head with narrowed eyes. "Hey, what's wrong?" I just shoved his hand away with a frown, unwilling to expose my little brother to such rude behavior.

"I'm fine, Morgan." Unfortunately for me, my voice had taken a cold tone, tipping my brother off. He gave me a frown before shaking his head with a sigh.

"Look, I can understand that leaving Ylisstol is hard for you, but we'll be just fine." My eyes widened as I realized that he had thought I was still upset about leaving our home behind to fall in the clutches of Grima and the Risen. "Look," He gently turned me around to look at the others, who were still laughing and smiling at Donnel's disgusting stories. My eyes became slits as I focused on their bliss. "See how relaxed everyone is?" I slowly let my eyes return to their normal width as I realized that he _did_ have a point. I hadn't seen them look so laid-back since we were all little children running around the castle. Slowly, I turned back to face my little brother. "We needed this, Lucina. Staying there would have killed us one way or another, you have to know that."

"I-I..." I struggled for words as he simply smiled at me, ignoring the act behind me.

"Come on, sister." He didn't give me a chance to speak. Instead, he grabbed my shoulders and lead me against my will to the circle of escapists. "I think that it's about time you ate something. Donnel and Owian managed to get us a really fat bear to eat this morning!" He roughly forced me to sit as the others snapped their attention to me, giving me salutations and nods of approval. Morgan sat down beside me with a smile, crossing his legs as usual.

"Well, mornin' Princess!" The dark-haired man grinned before reclining, his greasy palms resting against the yellow grass. "It's good to see ya' up and ready to face the day! We was hopin' you'd get a bit of extra sleep this mornin', what with your constant fightin' back at Ylisstol!" I didn't look at him; I simply balled my hands in my lap and tried to ignore his words. "We saved ya' some beat meat!" I glanced up to see him holding out a whole leg of meat with bright eyes. "I'm certain you're starvin' after all your hard work."

I glared at the offered food for a while, debating on whether or not I really wanted to accept food from someone like him. However, the loud complaints from my stomach made me call a temporary truce and take the noxious meat I was offered. When you're feeling like you're about to keel over from a lack of food, you'll take what you can get. I eagerly tore the food apart as the group continued with their little betrayal, chattering on like chipmunks.

"Well," Donnel leaned back once again, content with my acceptance. "Ya' see, Robin was really somethin'." I lifted my eyes to find his gaze suddenly gain a wistful quality to it. "That woman was as pretty as any bluebell ya' could find, but she wasn't as vain as those ladies in those fancy courts. No sir, not one bit." He smiled for a moment before letting out a sigh. "The only thing she worried 'bout was whether o' not she could slice a Risen in ta' two or in ta' three. I 'member that time when she pushed that there Lon'qu out of the way of a particularly nasty Risen just to land her own attack 'stead of his."

"W-Why?" My vision shifted to Yarne, his ears perked up at the mention of his father. "W-Why would she put herself in harm's way like that? She could've been killed!"

Donnel just laughed at this and shook his head. "Nah, not her! She never did somethin' if she couldn't take it...at least, not usually." His eyes sparkled for a moment as he suddenly motioned to Morgan and I with a wave of his hand. "That woman was some kinda reckless, but she was smart, too. Chrom was almost always tryin' to get her not to take so many risks, but she wasn't one to listen like that, even if it was him."

"Really?" I nearly choked on my mouthful of meat as Morgan spoke up beside me. I snapped my attention to my little brother to find his eyes wide and shimmering in the morning sun. "Mother was really _that_ battle-hungry?" He paused for a moment before letting out a short breath. "Well, that explains why Father always called her a Feroxi."

"Nah, not battle-hungry, young'un." The man with the cooking pot on his head simply smiled at my brother. "She always said that she wanted to make somethin' outta herself, instead of just sittin' 'round the fire and eatin' up our rations. She kinda acted like your friend Owian here," He paused to motion to our cousin with a slight falter in his grin. "Always eager to make herself a hero."

"Well," Morgan slowly dipped his head and closed his eyes, water still trickling down from his sopping head of hair. "She certainly got her wish..." I felt as if a rock dropped into my stomach at his words, his voice sounding so broken and miserable. I forced my food down before turning my head towards him, feeling a bit of his sadness leak into my own.

"Morgan," He nearly flinched at my voice, but he quickly recovered and gave me wide eyes of questioning. I slowly reached out to him, dropping my bear grease coated hand onto his much cleaner left hand. "I-It's all right." His eyes narrowed for a moment in thought before they fluttered shut with a sigh.

"I-I'm sorry, Luci." He gently pulled his hand away as the others watched on, their gazes burning through my skin. "I just...really miss her."

"Ack," We both looked up to see Donnel biting his lip with downcast eyes. "I-I'm mighty sorry, young'uns. I-I didn't mean to upset ya' by talkin' 'bout your folks. I just thought that ya' might wanna hear about your folks just a bit..." I felt a bit of guilt in the way that his shoulders drooped. Perhaps where he came from, all those years ago, brave heroes were honored through stories and legends, just like the fairy tales of our past lives. In this world of danger and destruction, such simple things were lost along the way.

Perhaps honoring those who have passed is not by remaining silent, but by loudly continuing their legacy...

I opened my mouth to speak, to try to apologize for my rude behavior, but I was interrupted by a sound I knew all too well, the sound of rustling bushes and bowing grass. My eyes grew wide just seconds before I pulled out my blade and sprang to my feet, the others quickly following suit. Charging into the makeshift camp were a masked boy with blue hair and a very familiar brunette boy. Both raced in with ragged breathing and ran to Brady, our make-shift unit's healer.

"Gerome! Inigo!" Morgan sprang to his feet and headed over to the two boys, my eyes quickly finding scrapes and wounds. "What in the world happened to you?!"

"R-Risen," Inigo barked out in a panic, his eyes wide with fear. "W-We were simply taking advantage of that spring we found when we were ambushed by what felt like a hundred units!" He panted before turning his auburn eyes towards me, the familiar murky film of fear taking over. "Barbarians, Wyvern Riders, Mages...all of them! They're coming straight for us!"

"Naga!" Morgan clenched his teeth before grabbing his Thunder tome. "Grima must have realized we left last night!" He abruptly turned to me with narrowed eyes of anger, although I knew that those eyes were not directed towards me. "Lucina! We have to leave again!" My little brother then turned to the rest of the group. "Quickly, everyone get inside of the cart!" Suddenly, Gerome butted in with a groan of pain, his right arm held by our white-haired healer.

"There's no time." The shock of the masked axe-wielder actually talking to someone other than Laurent was ignored by the sinking fear of a full-scale army attack. "They'll be here before we could ever load that cart and leave." He dipped his head in the worst way, his chin kissing the top of his armor.

"...We're...We're doomed." Yarne dipped his head in a similar fashion, closing his eyes to give a single tear a means of escape. "There's no way we can defeat them all by ourselves. We're going to die out here..." I felt a bitter, burning feeling rise in the back of my throat, forcing myself to stand taller amidst the rank stench of fear. _After all those restless nights trying to save our skins, were we really going to die like this, in the middle of nowhere?!_ I couldn't accept that, to fall after all of this.

"Never."

All eyes did _not_ divert to my face. No, not at all. Instead of my voice ringing out above this, a man with a pot for a helmet stood with his chin held high, stealing the very word on my tongue. Donnel's right hand gripped a Silver Lance until his knuckles turned white, acting as if this weapon were as precious to him as the Falchion was to my brother and I. He took a deep breath before opening his mouth once again. "I'm not letting anythin' touch you," The man's brown orbs narrowed as he scanned us, his teeth clenched. "_Any_ of you. Your folks trusted me with all your lives, and I mean to hold myself to that." My eyes widened as felt a terrible feeling wash over me, something that very clearly slipped over the others as well.

"But Donnel!" My brother was the first to speak up, his blue eyes brimming with tears. "There's too many! There's no possible way that—" His voice broke off, unable to finish such a terrible sentence. _If anyone were to stay behind and fight, they would perish in this place._ My mind finished for him, unable to block out the horrible truth of this war.

The man just laughed and bitterly shook his head with wet eyes. "Y'all don't understand. Ya' see," He paused to motion to his chest, right to his heart. "I was trained by Robin herself! That woman would work me like a dog until I couldn't hardly stand!" He gave us all the twisted smile that came with an unbearable pain, something we knew all too well. "I might not have all that in the ways of fancy-smance weapons, but I've got the next best thing!" His hand closed into a fist above his heart, lightly thumping against his chest. "I've got her courage, an' that's all I'd ever want."

Morgan took another step forward, the tears now escaping his deep blues and slipping down to his chin. "B-But what about—"

Donnel just cut him off again with a stern narrowing of his eyes. "No buts, young'un. I've got this under my belt like a hog gots slops for dinner!" He slowly pointed toward the north, beyond the stalled cart and horse. "Just follow this road 'till you reach that there town up ahead. Then, take the northwest path. Y'all find a tree with the sign of the Exalt carved on it. Once ya' find it, head directly west." His eyes narrowed before he took a shaking breath. "Y'all find a waterfall after a few hours, one that'll be all frozen by this time of year. Just walk behind it and ya'll find the place with ease."

He then turned to me with shivering eyes, his face red with the effort of holding back tears. "Take a skin o' water each; y'all need it on your escape." I felt my eyes sting as I gave him a sharp nod of confirmation. He gave me one in return before turning towards my little brother. "That there town is real nice; y'all find food and supplies easily. Scare that horse there 'till she runs off to the east. It'll throw those beasts off ya'." My brother nodded before solemnly walking over to the cart and collecting the twelve pouches of water, taking precious seconds to check the water levels before handing everyone a single pouch. My fingers felt stiff as I took my ration and tucked it on my belt, right beside my sword.

"I-I'll scare off the horse..." Yarne walked over towards the horse with sluggish feet. Then, before the mare could turn around, he used his lone Beaststone to transform, becoming a snarling Taguel right before our eyes. The poor workhorse reared up in the air, her front hooves shivering from fright. Then, with a loud whine, she raced off into the woods, her load bucking around after her. I felt a bit of shame at the thought of wasting such a luxury as a horse, but I knew that the beast would've been impractical to take when there were a dozen of us. Yarne's bright eyes glowed in the daylight as he padded back around on heavy feet.

"Well," His voice echoed in this furred form, becoming so much louder than usual. "I guess that was a bit easier than I thought. I'm lucky that mare didn't try to trample me instead!" The rest of us looked up at him with odd glances, wondering if he really could be scared of a _horse_ of all things. He seemed to pick up on this, for he quickly changed forms and returned to his _slightly less_ hairy form.

"Good," Donnel grinned at us before giving us all a stern face, the only sign of his previous emotions being the trails on his cheeks and the film over his grey eyes. "Now, all of ya' get going. Ya'll gotta get away before those monsters get here." A bitter smile flashed on his face before he went on, "I'll catch up, promise." These few words seemed to calm a few of us slightly, although they had no effect on the rest of us. I was one of us who was beyond hoping against the determined, who knew that such promises were fruitless. "Now, get goin'!"

"Come on!" Morgan back-stepped with a wave of his hand, trying to get people to follow him. "I'll lead the way!" Yarne, Nah, Kjelle, Laurent and the others walked up to him, gathering in a two-by-two formation for the march. I hung back while my eyes burned, my feet and legs aching as I numbly took a single step. Morgan looked back to give me a shocked face, most certainly confused about the reason I was reluctant to leave. I just gave him a nod and lifted my sheath just a bit higher. My brother seemed to understand me, for he gave me a nod and walked a little ways ahead.

"Lucina will protect the back. Everyone, let's move!" Then, he raced on, leading the way through the gravel road. The rest of our group followed after him with their weapons at the ready, whether it be magic, a sword or even an axe. Each pair held two different weapons, making sure that everyone was covered for their weakness. I noticed with a bitter smile that my eccentric cousin had put it upon himself to protect our lone Archer, frail Norie. I gave a weak smile at the sight before slowly turning towards our last and final Shepherd.

"Donnel," My voice was barely a whisper at this point, cracked with emotion. The man still heard me however, and he quickly turned to face me with a confused look. I swallowed hard before reaching down and tightening the grip on my hilt. "...Did you really know her that well? Our mother, I mean." The dark curls on his head bounced as he nodded, something I had never noticed before.

"Yeah." He smiled at me before tilting his head towards his lance. "This Silver Lance was from her, to be sure I was never outta a weapon." The smile on his face quivered with a falling tear, making that sinking feeling return to my chest. "She made me into a Shepherd, an' I could never thank her enough for that honor." He paused before letting out a broken chuckle. "You look like her, ya' know that?"

At this I lifted my head up in confusion. _Me? Look like my mother? That's impossible! _The confusion I felt must have been easy to see, for the man simply gave me a laugh and reached up to fix my tiara, causing a bit of embarrassment to rise to my face. "You've got your pa's hair and eyes, but that don't mean that ya' don't look like her." His hand slowly dropped to his side as his tears created dark stains on the pebbles, rolling off of some and marking others. "You've got that spark in your eyes, just like her. She always had that inside her. It was the one thing that I always 'member."

I felt my throat close up as his attention shifted back to the way Inigo and Gerome had crashed through. "I want you to hold on to that there spark, little one. Don't lose it, whatever ya' do."

"I-I won't," I croaked out. I was struggling not to cry in front of him as this rock in my chest took ahold of my heart and squeezed it so tight, it was a wonder I was able to stand. "I-I promise." I felt my feet struggle back, trying to force myself to leave. I knew that I had to go, that I had to catch up to the others. But, something felt like a rope around me, pulling me back to this lone survivor of that cursed battle. I had spent the time I knew him in disdain, but now the thought of leaving him behind like this was killing me.

The brunette turned around to flash me a warning frown. "Lucina, _run._ Those beasts will be here any minute, an' I want ya'll to be far away when that happens." My feet scraped against the small stones as I tried to force myself to turn around and run, just as the others had before me. "Watch out for 'em, Lucina." My head lifted just a bit as his voice cracked. "Make sure that y'all make it out alive. Your folks wouldn't want to meet ya' so soon."

"Right," I felt like a hangman's noose was around me as I forced myself to breathe and turn away, ripping my blurring vision away from the man. "Th-Thank you, Donnel. Thank you."

He gave me a nod before readying himself to attack with his lance, his weapon pointed directly at the small underbrush. With a shaking breath, I struggled backwards and ran as fast as I could, leaving a trail of shameful tears behind me. Just as I was leaving, a sudden gust of wind billowed over the field, forcing the dying grass to bow down towards the path to Regina Ferox. This wind also provided a lift to the voice of our last guardian, letting my ears hear what would certainly be his last words.

"Robin, I'll see ya' soon."

* * *

><p><em>Author's Note: As you may have noticed, I finished the cover for this piece. If you may recognize me—which I do doubt, seeing as my accounts have very different names—you will know that I do all of my own art for my works. I hope that this new addition to the story will add to this a bit.<em>

_So, emotional chapter is emotional. Terribly sorry, but I'm afraid Donnel will not be joining us in this tale. After all, Lucina clearly states that _all_ of the Shepherds perished in her timeline. However, in this case, Donnel lived a little longer than the others by preparing the safe-house for the children in case of war. That limp of his is from that battle, in case that was unclear._

_I've always imagined that Donnel would get a bit attached to the Shepherds, specifically Chrom and Robin. I mean, they were the ones that let him become one of their own in the first place! Also, it doesn't help that in my file, Donnel paired up with Robin during his introduction chapter. Therefore, I wanted to bring that little bond up to the front for a bit...just to flesh him out just a bit. Whether this bond is love or perhaps a family-like bond, that is for you to decide._

_Will the Broken Dozen make it to the Feroxi border in time? How long will Donnel be able to hold them off before those monsters can escape and chase after the children? Tune in next time for the exciting continuation!_


End file.
